As an individual ages, the eye is less able to accommodate, or bend the natural lens, to focus on objects that are relatively near to the observer. This condition is known as presbyopia. Among the methods used to correct presbyopia is the providing of contact lenses incorporating both near and distance vision correction on each contact lens worn by the individual. In one type of such lenses, the distance and near vision regions are concentrically arranged around the geometric center of the lens. In another type of lens, a segmented lens, the near and distance vision regions are not concentric about the geometric center of the lens. In this type of lens, the majority of the near vision portion is located below the 0-180 degree, or horizontal, axis of the lens.
The wearer of the segmented lenses is able to access the near vision region of the lens because the lens is constructed to allow it to translate, or move vertically relative to the pupil of the wearer's eye. Thus, when the lens wearer's gaze shifts downwardly to read, the lens moves vertically upwardly positioning the near vision portion in the center of the wearer's gaze.
Conventional translating contact lenses are disadvantageous in that the vertical distance that the lens must move is large given that the lenses incorporate only a distance and near vision zone. Also, if the wearer's pupil is constricted, the lens will have even farther to translate to allow the wearer to access the near vision zone. Yet another disadvantage of the conventional lenses is that the difference in magnification between the near and distance vision zones will produce an effect in which the viewed image appears to “jump” as one moves from distance to near vision zones.